Good Turns
by Giton
Summary: Crais on the run, how ironic can life be. The story is a result on a Snippet Challenge on the Crais' Cohorts Board.


Disclaimer on punctuation and spacing: Fanfiction.net seems to take some out!  
  
Disclaimer: "Farscape" is a protected trademark and I'm just borrowing the characters. I promise to give them back once I've used them, hopefully more or less intact.  
  
Following story is the result of a Snippet Challenge on the Crais' Cohorts Board.  
  
Title: Good turns  
  
Author: GitonCrais  
  
Rating: General  
  
Spoilers: None  
  
Keywords: Crais on the run  
  
Summary: Crais on the run, how ironic can life be  
  
**Good Turns  
**  
By GitonCrais  
  
Crais cursed his luck or rather, the lack of it. He had not anticipated that the wanted beacons would have been put in place so fast and this far out. What a fool he had been to believe this.  
  
A fine drizzle was slowly soaking him, especially since he had to stand still to avoid detection.  
  
He pressed himself flat against the wall in the side street as he could hear another contingent of Peacekeepers pass the alley. He was thankful for his black attire and his black hair, it afforded him a meager concealment.  
  
He had no way of outrunning them. He couldn't go to the pod directly, that was a sure way of giving himself up. It was only a matter of time.  
  
For a brief moment he contemplated turning himself in. He clenched his jaws; that was not an option. Even if he succeeded in pleading convincingly, it would only mean a delay of execution.  
  
The sounds of Peacekeeper boots faded in the distance.  
  
Cautiously he looked around.  
  
The narrow alley was shrouded in shadows and wasn't very long.  
  
He had to hide for the day and attempt to get to the pod under the cover of darkness.  
  
He cursed himself for a fool to have gone back to town after he had brought the supplies to his pod but he had needed the medical supplies. He cursed the town-planner for situating the Healer's Quarters in the other side of town.  
  
It had been his luck, if one might call it that, to have seen the man talk to one of the Peacekeepers and point in his direction. Since then he had been running and hiding.  
  
An ironic smile curled his lips, better get used to it.  
  
He looked around. He only saw closed doors, except for maybe one possibility, halfway down the street. If he were wrong, he would be trapped. A wooden door, set into the wall, would probably lead into a garden.  
  
When he heard Peacekeeper shouts in the distance, it made up his mind.  
  
He sidled along the wall to the door. The door was locked.  
  
The wall into which the door was set wasn't too high.  
  
One leap in the air and his hands gripped the edge. His powerful arms pulled him up and soon he was over the wall and dropped to the other side. A tree near the wall provided him with immediate cover from the house. The low branches hid him from view but didn't protect him against the fine rain.  
  
Entering the garden had not been too soon.  
  
He could hear Peacekeepers talk on the other side of the wall.  
  
His eyes searched for alternative cover. Two more trees and some bushes surrounded a neatly trimmed lawn. Not much of a cover. His heart hammered loudly in his chest.

"Anyone spotted him yet," he heard a male voice ask.  
  
"No, but he can't have strayed too far from this area," another male answered.  
  
A chuckle, "Don't bet your mivonks on it. He is a sly Blotcher."  
  
"How would you know?"  
  
"I served with him before he made Captain. Always found a way out for us."  
  
"Good Commander?"  
  
"Yes. Hard on his troops but hard on himself too. He's a survivor."  
  
"Well, he needs all his luck to survive this. Once we get our hands on him..."  
  
"When it comes to Crais, it has nothing to do with luck and we have to catch him first."  
  
The voices moved off.  
  
Crais let out a sigh of relief. He had not realized he had been holding his breath.The backdoor of the house opened and he hid behind the tree. A woman stepped out.  
  
"Who's there?" She stepped out with the tentative step of the blind or very near sighted.  
  
"Who's there?"  
  
Crais crossed the lawn quickly before her cries could alert the Peacekeepers.  
  
He laid a hand on her arm and when he saw her eyes widen and her mouth open in panic, he closed a hand over her mouth, "Hush. I'm not here to harm you but don't cry out."  
  
She nodded.  
  
Slowly he let his hand drop from her mouth. She stayed silent.  
  
"Can we go indoors?"  
  
She nodded again and turned to proceed inside.  
  
He followed quickly and closed the door.  
  
When he turned around, he saw the panic in her expression.   
  
"Who are you?"  
  
"A fugitive," he said softly. When he heard her gasp, he added, "From the Peacekeeper."  
  
She relaxed a little but was still frightened of the stranger, "Why?"  
  
Crais crossed the kitchen but stopped short a couple of paces away from her, "I was a prisoner and I escaped." He hoped he had been right and she couldn't see that he was wearing a uniform.  
  
"What did you do to become a prisoner?"  
  
"I protected my brother."  
  
She nodded in understanding; she stepped closer and reached a hand up to touch his face.  
  
For a moment Crais stiffened and then relaxed, allowing her to touch him.  
  
Her touch was light.   
  
She smiled, "You have a nice strong face; I like your voice."  
  
Her hands dropped to his shoulder, "You are wet. Take your tunic off and let it dry. You are safe here."  
  
Crais relaxed and took his tunic off. She took it off him and draped it on the back of a chair near the stove, "It should be dry soon."  
  
Crais thanked her.  
  
"What is your name?"  
  
Crais contemplated then said, "Baltor. Just Baltor."  
  
"All right, Baltor, I am Celeah. Are you hungry?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Good," she smiled, "I make you something to eat."  
  
She busied herself preparing some food, all the while keeping up a conversation, "I don't get the chance to cook for others that often. It would be a pleasure."  
  
"The pleasure would be mine," answered Crais in his deep voice.  
  
She laughed, a nice tingling laugh, "I bet you would. Are you on your own?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Were you able to protect your brother?"  
  
"No," said Crais in a strained voice, "I couldn't. He died."  
  
Her face fell, "I'm sorry."  
  
When Crais said nothing, she urged him to sit down.  
  
Before Crais sat down, he asked if he could assist her.  
  
She shook her head merrily, "You would only be in the way."He watched her cook.  
  
Her confidence in the kitchen amazed him, "Have you been blind long?"  
  
"Since I was a little girl."  
  
"I'm sorry to hear that."  
  
She smiled again, "It's not that bad. At least I have been able to see colours, see the sun, even if it was for a short period of my life. And what about you?"  
  
Crais folded his hands on the table, "I grew up in a farming community. When the Peacekeepers came, I tried to protect my brother. He died anyway and they imprisoned me."  
  
She looked sad, "How long were you their prisoner?"  
  
"A long time," Crais said evasively.  
  
She nodded again, "I understand. You don't want to speak about it."  
  
She brought two plates to the table and placed one in front of him, she placed the cutlery next to it, "I hope you will enjoy this. It is just a simple dish."  
  
His pleasure was evident in his voice, "I will. It has been... a while since I tasted home cooking."  
  
She blushed.  
  
It was a simple dish, scrambled fried eggs, with tossed vegetables and smoked strips of meat. But to Crais it was something to savour. He had not lied when he said he hadn't tasted much home cooking. He ate slowly but with relish.  
  
"You like it?"  
  
He grunted in pleasure.They had just finished eating when they heard the banging on the door.  
  
Crais stiffened in his seat.  
  
She laid a comforting hand on his arm.  
  
She stood up, moved to the side of the kitchen, and opened a door in the floor, "You hide in here. They will not find you."  
  
He was quick enough to grab his tunic and disappear under the floorboards.  
  
He stood in the darkness and listened to the sounds overhead.  
  
She had let them in. They searched the floors.  
  
"Why are there two plates on the table?" The voices were muffled.  
  
"My son had eaten and only left a little while ago."  
  
Barked commands.  
  
The house became quiet again.The door was lifted, "You can come out now, they have left."  
  
Crais climbed out.  
  
"They really must want you badly."  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I stole something from them when I escaped... Another prisoner."  
  
"He's valuable to them?"  
  
"Very."  
  
"Then I hope you can keep him out of their hands."  
  
"I hope so too."They sat down again.  
  
"How were you blinded?"  
  
"Peacekeepers," she said with anger in her voice but then her voice softened, "The Peacekeepers were the reason I don't see the light anymore but it was also a young Peacekeeper who saved me. Ironic isn't it?"  
  
"How did he do that?"  
  
"We, my parents and I, were on the planet Tell-Nav-6 when the Peacekeepers came. The people weren't giving up their children without some resistance. The Peacekeepers started shooting. A pulse blast grazed my temple and I fell. In the panic, I could have been easily trampled or killed. This young Peacekeeper, he ran over to me and lifted me in his arms to get me to the side. He was wounded by a stray blast; it grazed his shoulder. His blood splattered on my face. He was the last face I saw before the light was taken away from me."  
  
"I hope he didn't give you nightmares," Crais swallowed.  
  
"No," her soft smile made her face look pretty, "He had a kind face. Tanned. Dark eyes, I had never seen them that dark, black hair and the kindest smile, despite his injury. I will never forget that smile." She sighed, "He handed me over into my father's arms and told him to take care of me. I can't remember much after that."  
  
She stood up and moved the plates to the sink, "I often wondered what had become of him."Crais remembered the incident.  
  
It had been his first recruiting mission. He had not liked it but he had to follow orders.  
  
He remembered seeing the little girl fall. Saw the blood on her shoulder. He also saw the panic of the people in the street.  
  
He ran towards her and scooped her in his arms while running with her to the side.  
  
A stray pulse blast had hit his shoulder, his first injury.  
  
He looked down in her face, she was pretty and one day, if Cholok wanted it, she would grow into a beautiful woman. He thrust her into the arms of the first person he could see.  
  
"You are very quiet Baltor," she said when she walked back to the table.  
  
"Just wondering about the irony of it all," his voice was deep and soft.  
  
She nodded and smiled, "Yes, I can see that. The Peacekeepers took my sight but one among them gave me my life."  
  
They sat together amicably in the kitchen for the remainder of the afternoon.  
  
Celeah did most of the talking. She spoke mostly of the people of the town and how kind they were to her, while Crais listened.  
  
He told her in turn a story to satisfy her curiosity about him and his current predicament, totally fabricated but satisfying. She wouldn't suspect she had been harbouring a renegade Peacekeeper.Finally, it was time for him to go.  
  
Dusk was slowly turning to darkness and the rain had stopped.  
  
She walked him to the door in the garden and unlocked it, then turned to him, "You stay safe, Baltor and out of the clutches of the Peacekeepers."  
  
He looked into her serene face, "I intent to. Thank you for saving my life, Celeah."  
  
"The pleasure was mine."  
  
He was about to leave when he turned back to her.  
  
His finger was warm and gentle under her chin when he placed a gentle kiss on her cheek, "Your Peacekeeper lived and was saved by a beautiful woman."  
  
He quickly slipped out of the door and disappeared into the darkness, leaving a stunned woman touching the side of her face.He made his way carefully back to the space port, using alleys and back streets, taking full advantage of the cover of darkness. A few times, he came close to being detected but he was lucky. Before they realized that they had missed him, he had boarded his transport pod and had taken off, it was too late to stop him.  
  
His luck held and soon he was back on board Talyn. They StarBurst before the Peacekeepers could follow them.  
  
Talyn was curious to know what had happened.  
  
Crais smiled, "Irony, Talyn. I was saved by the woman I had helped when she was a little girl."  
  
Talyn chuckled; it started to sound like Crais' chuckles All is not unfair then  
  
Crais smiled back, "No Talyn, life can be fair sometimes."  
  
**The End**


End file.
